BY KYLE BAUER
Last night, an exhibition game between the Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers in London, Ontario experienced an unfortunate and controversial moment. Wayne Simmonds, an African-Canadian forward for the Flyers was charging down the ice on Red Wings goaltender Jordan Pearce in the shootout, when a fan chucked a banana peel onto the ice in his direction. Simmonds kept his composure, scoring the goal in the eventual 4-3 loss for Philadelphia.
“It was certainly unusual. I don’t know if it had anything to do with the fact I’m black. I certainly hope not.” Simmonds said.
While there is no confirmation, it is believed that this incident was racially motivated. Nine years ago, a similar behavior struck towards now-retired Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Kevin Weekes in Montreal when a banana was also thrown in his direction during a playoff game. At the time, Weekes said that he wouldn’t let such fan behavior mar his experience and that he was sure 99% of t...
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